Canyon to keep water measures

With no clear indication of when the drought will end, Canyon officials said there is a chance their measures to reduce water use will stay in place until winter.

“We need the (water use) numbers to stay down for a considerable period of time,” said Canyon Public Works Director Dan Reese. “They may have to stay down a month before we start thinking of getting out of the plan.”

Canyon is in Stage 1 of its drought contingency plan, an order that governs water use when consumption nears the city’s daily production capacity. Stage 1 requires city officials to ask businesses and residents to try to reduce usage.

Canyon enters Stage 1 when users consume at least 65 percent, or 4.2 million gallons, of its daily water capacity for five consecutive days. The city has been in that stage since early June.

The city can get out of Stage 1 if water use drops below 4.2 million gallons for five consecutive days, but officials intend to keep the plan in effect out of caution, Reese said.

In fact, water figures show the city could have left the plan in early July when consumption fell below the mark for six consecutive days.

“Technically, we could have come out of the plan but we knew it was coming right back,” Reese said. “Nothing says we have to get out. There’s a lot of flexibility in the plan.”

Canyon figures show the city’s average daily use in June was 4.4 million gallons per day, a bit more than the 4.1 million gallons the city has seen through late July. Last year, Canyon averaged 2.9 million gallons per day in July and 3.6 million gallons per day in June.

The city enters Stage 2 when water exceeds 4.8 million gallons for five consecutive days. The second stage gives city officials the choice to impose odd- and even-numbered watering days for users.

Canyon usually purchases about 30 percent of its water from Amarillo. Canyon budgeted about $400,000 for Amarillo water, but has had to spend about $574,000 on that item so far, according to figures.

“I don’t know what happened,” Reese said. “I don’t know if people got tired of hearing all the conservation stuff, but this isn’t a trend we can afford. Without rain, this (drought) is going to continue.”

National Weather Service figures show the Amarillo area has received 2.1 inches of rain so far this year, less than the 10.3 inches received at the same time in 2010. Weather service numbers also show the Amarillo area usually receives 11.8 inches by this time of the year.

Canyon will need to control consumption closely to avoid stressing its water system, Reese said.

“We can be in a real problem if this continues for a couple months,” he said.

Amarillo officials have addressed their problem by enacting voluntary odd- and even-day lawn watering schedules and producing a series of public service announcements that offered residents water conservation tips.

Canyon officials have created no campaign like Amarillo’s, said Canyon City Manager Randy Criswell. One of the few ways Canyon has relayed the conservation message is through local news media’s coverage of the drought, he said.

“Do we have additional campaigns planned as of today? We don’t,” Criswell said, “but we need to be talking about how we go about getting the public re-energized with the situation we got. We’re going to have to try to make ourselves and our needs more conscious to the public.”

Reese said the city’s measures appear to have produced mixed results. He said the yards he’s driven by this summer show which residents seem to have heeded the city’s measures.

“I’ve seen some of both,” he said about yard conditions at Canyon homes. “Some are hurting, and some are not hurting.”

Janelle Hicks, who lives at 14 Village Drive, said she would support odd- and even-numbered watering days. She said she waters her yard twice per week.

“I think they should (impose watering days),” she said. “We’ve got to do something.”

Londa Decker, who lives at 30 Village Drive, said she already performs odd- and even-watering days. She said she has also purchased plants that require low watering levels and uses a sprinkler and water wand that allow her to control water amounts better.

“But there’s been some plants we’ve let die,” she said. “The things that are irreplaceable, we’ve watered as needed.”